William h



(No Model.)

W. HQBROWN.

PIRE PROOF FLOOR. No. 384,421. Patented June 12, 1888.

@M11/wooo@ f Snom/Lto@ MJOM. ffQ/fmwm FFIC FIRE-PROOF FLOORs SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 384,421, dated June 12, 1888,

Application filedV -Iannar5- 3, i888.

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that l, WILLIAM I-I, BROWN, a citizen ol' the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of' Marion and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and usefnl Improvements in Fire-Proof Floors, of which the following is a specification.

My said invention consists in various improvements in the construction and arrangement of sleepers for use in the construction of fire-proof floors, by which I am enabled to secure them more rigidly to the floor-beams, and also am enabled te secure the wooden door directly thereto by means ol` ordinary nails, as will be presently more fully described.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part hercol', and on which similar letters ol' reference indicate similar paris, Figure 1 is a perspective view ol a section of i'iooring embodying my said invention; Fig. 2, asection across the iloor, but longitudinally of the sleepers; Fig, I5, a view Similar to a portion ol' Fig. 2, on an enlarged scale, showing the iloor and (loer-beam in cross-see tion and the sleeper in side elevation, and Fig. 4, a cross-section loo-king io'lhc right from the dotted line 44 in Fig.

In said drawings, the portions marked A represent the floor-beam; B, the sleeper; C, a device for securing said sleeper to said doorbeam, and D the i'loor. l

The floor-beam A is the ordinary iron floorbeam commonly used inthe construction of tire-proof buildings, and needs no special deseription.

The sleeper 3 is formed in two parts, which, when put together, form in outline a doublyiiangcd beam somewhat similar to the lloorbeam. Each part is rolled with an ol'iset or depression in the upper side of its inner face, and with a groove near its lewe-redfge, so that when the two parts are put together and secured by rivets or bolts b, as shown in the drawings, a longitudinal recess is formed in the top of the sleeper, the sides of which are substantially parallel, extending' the entire length of said sleeper, and a groove, b', to admit the head of the part C, with a narrower opening, as shown, is -i'ormcdlin its under side.

The device C consists of ahook-shaped part Serial No. 259,693. (No model.)

somewhat tapered to correspond with the taper,

of said liange.

The door D is the ordinary tongue-and- `groove iiooring, and is secured to the sleepers by means of the ordinary tapered nails, d,

(shown in dotted lines,) which are driven into said flooring, as usual, at the top ei' the tongue down into the recess formed in the top ol'said sleeper, which, being at its top of about the width of the nail at the point, binds against or grips said nail, and by reason of the wedge shape of the nail thetwo sections ol' thcsleeper are forced apart sufficiently to allow the nail to be driven to the position desired, where it is securely held by the grip of the two parts 0f the sleeper upon it, thus firmly securing the door to the iron beam with the ordinary nail used in putting down liooring on wooden sleepers. The intervening space between the iianges and the sleeper B may be filled with any {ire-proof materialmsuch as the tiling E or corrugated metal plate F, i'illed with lireproof material, F', `as illustrated-init, as it forms no part of my present invention, need not be particularly described.

My invention is used as follows: The sleepers being rolled, as described, and the two parts being securely riveted or bolted together, as shown, they are secured to the lloorbeams A by the devices C, said devices being slid into the recess b, formed at theloweredge of said sleeper, the head of said device being slid into said recess from the end up to the flange oi' the [loer-beam, with which its hooked point engages, and is then driven tightly against said floor-beam, thus drawing down and tightening up the parts and securing them irml y together, the head of said devices bearing against its seatin the groove, the laterallyprojecting ears against the under side of the sleeper, andthe hooked portion lagainst the iiange of the floor-beam, affording three distinct bearings binding against each other.

TOO

These devices are preferably arranged in pairs, one on each side of the floor-beam, as shown. By this means not only a very secure and rigid connection is provided, but the adjustment of these parts in relation to each other is made Very easy, as will be readily understood, The sleepers being thus secured in position, the ooring D is laid and nailed to said sleepers exactly as it would be on wooden sleepers, the nails being directed into the longitudinal recess between the two parts of said sleeper, as before described.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. .Tn the construction of a lire-proof floor, the combination, with the floor-beam A, of the sleeper provided with a longitudinal recess, b', the devicev C, formed with a head, c, adapted to [it into said recess, the ears c', ar. ranged to bear against the under side of said sleeper, and a hooked forwardly-extended portion arranged to engage with the flange of the floor-beam, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the door-beam, of the sleeper B, formed in two parts, with alongitudinal groove at its bottom and a, longitudinal recess in its top, a. device engaging Wlth said longitudinal groove in its bottom, and the flange ofthe floor-beam for securing them toc gether, the flooring arranged on said sleepers and secured thereto by nails driven into the longitudinal recess in the top of said sleepers and clamped between the sides thereof, snb stantially as set forth.

3. In a fire-proof Hoor, the combination of the sleeper formed with a recess in its top ex tending longitudinally thereof, and formed with substantially straight sides arranged to clamp the floornai1 when driven into said recess, andthe flooring laid upon said sleeper and secured thereto by nails driven through said flooring and into said recess in its top, between the sides of which they are clamped, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I. have hereunto set my hand and seal, at Indianapolis, Indiana, this 31st day of December, A. D. 1887.

TILLTAM Il. BROWN. [ns] Witnesses:

E. W'. BRADFORD, CHARLES L. THURBER. 

